earth friendly

Pope Francis has weighed in on climate change, with the head of the Catholic church demanding his flock take global warming seriously. The lengthy message was released as an Encyclical Letter - a letter issued to bishops - today, in which Pope Francis revealed he had been in discussion with scientists, theologians, and more on topics like water quality, "throwaway culture", loss of biodiversity, and global inequality.

Audi may not have persuaded Americans that diesel isn't the Devil's fuel but you can't accuse it of not trying, setting both economy and performance records in Europe. When it comes to speed, it's the Audi RS5 TDI competition concept setting a record time for a diesel around the Sachsenring, its 435 HP engine powering the car to complete a 2.2 mile lap in 1 minute 35.35 seconds. That, Audi credits, is down to its unusual electric compressor.

Tesla has revealed Tesla Energy, its ambitious plan to make sustainable electricity more practical by putting rechargeable batteries into homes and businesses. Announced at Tesla Motor's Hawthorne facility today, Tesla Energy consists of a wall-mounted lithium-ion battery that can operate in multiple ways, including as a backup for power-outages, as a way to "stockpile" power when traditional energy suppliers are offering lower rates, or - most interestingly - store surplus solar energy, such as for use during the night.

NASCAR fans who tuned in early to Saturday night's race at Richmond International Raceway saw a vehicle of a completely different type leading the pack of 43 racers around the track. It was the NASCAR Sprint Cup series' Toyota Owners 400, and a 2016 Toyota Mirai sedan became the first hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle to serve as a pace car for an event by the racing body. This was another NASCAR first for Toyota, as in 2009 the first hybrid vehicle to act as a pace car was a Camry Hybrid.

The rumors are true. Tesla just "announced" that it will unveil new type of lithium-ion battery for homes and offices. In an email to investors, Tesla's Jeffery Evanson said that the company will use its April 30th presentation to, "explain the advantages of our solutions and why past battery options were not compelling.” The innovative car company also plans to reveal a second, "very large" lithium-ion battery for large-scale utilities. Such a sizable battery would be idea for doomsday preppers and those wishing to stay "off the grid."

Electric vehicle owners in San Francisco now have a new option to charge their rides thanks to some good old solar power. Making it even better than charging from your home power outlet is that it's completely free. Thanks to company Envision Solar, three Electric Vehicle Autonomous Renewable Chargers have been installed in San Francisco, allowing completely off-the-grid charging. The solar powered units each generate 3.3 kilowatts of electricity, and are connected to a lithium-ion battery pack capable of storing 22.5 kilowatt-hours of electricity.

When people remember the name of your product, even if they've only memorized the codename, it makes sense not to change it. That's Chevrolet's strategy with its new electric car for the everyman, opting to stick with Bolt EV despite the potential for confusion. Confirmed for production shortly after it surprised even GM with the warmth of its reception in concept form at the Detroit Auto Show in January, the car promises around 200 miles of range. However, naysayers had argued a name change was all but essential given the rest of Chevrolet's range.

GM is slashing EV and hybrid car pricing at both the budget and luxury ends of the spectrum, as it attempts to spur last-gasp sales while new models are readied. At the fancy end of the scale, Cadillac has made further reductions on its distinctive but little-loved ELR hybrid coupe, a car which has struggled to find buyers since its debut two years ago. Meanwhile, down at the compact level, Chevrolet is dropping Spark EV pricing in an attempt to get more drivers into its all-electric city car.

Tesla is reporting a record quarter to start 2015. According to the company, they delivered 10,030 cars in Q1 2015 alone, their best ever. The company also says their figures are highly accurate (with a 1% error rate) due to the fact they do ship directly to customers, and a delivery is only counted if the customer takes ownership and all the paperwork is finalized. This all comes after Tesla CEO Elon Musk gave some telling commentary on his company’s performance in China, suggesting they were ‘misled’ about interest in the country.

When announcing something new, Elon Musk sometimes just talks about plans, or sometimes just gives his plans away. With Hyperloop, Musk essentially said he was too busy to make it work, and was just giving the concept away. A few days ago, Musk said Tesla had a new product category lined up for release, and it was “not a car”. Our minds immediately went to batteries for the home, and we might have been right. According to a new report, Tesla has been testing batteries in homes for sme time, now.

Tesla will reveal a "major" new product at the end of April, CEO Elon Musk has teased, but don't expect a new car. The outspoken chief exec took to Twitter to announce the April 30th launch, which will take place at Tesla's Hawthorne Design Studio in California. While exactly what's on the agenda hasn't been confirmed, recent chatter points to the new product being a battery system intended for domestic use, rather than to power an electric vehicle.

Electric transportation company Gogoro has announced its first pilot cities for its Smartscooter, with EV trials kicking off in Taipei City and New Taipei City this summer. Revealed at CES in January, the Gogoro Smartscooter promises up to 60 miles of driving on a single charge, at which point its removable battery packs can be simply swapped out at a Gogoro Energy Network "Go Station" rather than demanding to be plugged into the wall. I caught up with CEO Horace Luke to find out more.